Hans Wijers

Hans Wijers
Born Gerardus Johannes
11 January 1951 (1951-01-11) (age 61)
Oostburg, Netherlands
Residence Utrecht
Nationality Dutch
Ethnicity Caucasian
Education MSc at Rijksuniversiteit Groningen, PhD from Erasmus University
Occupation CEO, president of the Board of Management
Employer AkzoNobel
Known for CEO of AkzoNobel (current), former Minister of Economic Affairs (1994–1998), former president of the Dutch World Wildlife Fund
Salary € 3.783.800 (2010)[1]
Term 2003 onwards
Predecessor Cees van Lede
Successor Ton Büchner (spring 2012)
Political party D66
Partner Edith Sijmons
Children 2
Website
www.akzonobel.com

Gerardus Johannes (Hans) Wijers (born 11 January 1951) is the current CEO of AkzoNobel. From 1994 until 1998 he was a minister of Economic Affairs of the Netherlands for the liberal democrats party D66.

Personal

Hans Wijers was born in Oostburg, the Netherlands, on 11 January 1951.

After secondary school at Hogere burgerschool (HBS-B) level, Wijers studied Economics at the Rijksuniversiteit Groningen, where he graduated in 1976. As assistant professor, he taught Economics at the Erasmus University, and in 1982 received a doctorate for his research in "Industrial politics: the design of governmental policy for industrial sectors".[2][3]

Hans Wijers lives together with Dr Edith A. Sijmons, gynaecologist. They have a daughter (1992) and son (1994), and live in Utrecht.[4][5][6]

Career

From 1982 till 1984, Wijers worked as a civil servant at the ministry of Social Affairs and Labour and later at the ministry of Economic Affairs. Subsequently, he became a management consultant at The Boston Consulting Group for, among others, Bakkenist, Spits & Co.[2]

As minister of Economic affairs from 1994 onward, he was responsible for the law change regarding the extending of shop opening hours, and the coined the Competition Regulation law. A short period he was interim minister of Finance, during illness of Gerrit Zalm, the minister at the time. Wijers completed one full four-year period of the Dutch ministerial cabinet until 1998. Then he chose to continue his career in consultancy, where he became senior vice president of the Boston Consulting Group.[2] As a secondary job from 1999 until 2003, Wijers also was president of the Dutch tributary of the World Wildlife Fund.[7]

Since May 2003, he has been the president of the Board of Management of AkzoNobel;[8][9] Sulzer AG CEO Ton Büchner has been selected to replace him when Wijers exits AkzoNobel in 2012.[10] Additional to his work for AkzoNobel, Wijers is non-executive director at Royal Dutch Shell, Chairman of the Oranje Fonds and the Ubbo Emmius Fund Foundation at the University of Groningen. He is also active for the Concertgebouw, the Young Pianist Foundation and the European Round Table of Industrialists.[2][11]

References

  1. ^ "Annual Report 2010" (in English). Akzo Nobel. 2010. http://report.akzonobel.com/2010/ar/servicepages/downloads/files/akzonobel_report10_entire.pdf. Retrieved 2011-08-02. 
  2. ^ a b c d "Hans Wijers, Chief Executive Officer". AkzoNobel. 2009. http://www.akzonobel.com/aboutus/board_of_management/hans_wijers/index.aspx. Retrieved 2009-03-12. 
  3. ^ "Dr. G.J. Wijers". Parlementair Documentatie Centrum (PDC UL) of Leiden University. http://www.parlement.com/9291000/biof/01629. Retrieved 2009-03-12. 
  4. ^ "Wijers doet mee aan Nationale Voorleesontbijt" (in Dutch). Chemie in de media, original De Gelderlander. 28 January 2004. http://www.dzine-online.nl/client23/nb/nb333/batch313/Wijers_doet_mee_aan_Nationale_Voorleesontbijt.html. Retrieved 2009-03-12. 
  5. ^ "FEM Top 100 machtigste bestuurders: - positie 12". FEM. 2009. http://www.fembusiness.nl/web/show/id=70063/dbid=40/typeofpage=66524?WT.srch=1&gclid=COu4wLKfnpkCFQ0zQgod6zXzDw. Retrieved 2009-02-12. 
  6. ^ "Corporate Social Responsibility - Intervet India". Schering-Plough. 26 June 2005. http://www.intervet.com/news/2005-06-25_-_corporate_social_responsibility_-_intervet_india.aspx. Retrieved 2009-03-12. 
  7. ^ "Karel Vuursteen nieuwe voorzitter Wereld Natuur Fonds" (in Dutch). Nieuwsbank. 2003. http://www.nieuwsbank.nl/inp/2003/05/21/R208.htm. Retrieved 2009-03-12. 
  8. ^ "Akzo Nobel Annual Report 2007". Amsterdam: AkzoNobel. 2008-04-22. http://www.annualreport.akzonobel.com/annualreport2007/overview/key_developments. Retrieved 2008-04-26. 
  9. ^ Jonathan Steffen, ed (2008) (in Dutch). Tomorrow's Answers Today. The history of AkzoNobel since 1646. Amsterdam: Akzo Nobel N.V.. pp. 280. ISBN 978.90.5730.622.8. 
  10. ^ "AkzoNobel CEO Hans Wijers to leave 2012 – Ton Büchner to succeed" (Press release). AkzoNobel. 2011-06-10. http://www.akzonobel.com/news_center/news/news_and_press_releases/2011/akzonobel_ceo_hans_wijers_to_leave_2012_ton_buchner_to_succeed.aspx. Retrieved 2011-08-29. 
  11. ^ "Board of Directors - About Shell". Shell. 2009. http://www.shell.com/home/content/aboutshell/who_we_are/leadership/the_board/board_of_directors_09112006.html. Retrieved 2009-03-12.